Can you believe the season for golf majors is already over, and we’re only just half way through the year? It’s hard to think that the big events are finished for 2019. Will this allow some of the smaller events to grab the limelight? The organisers hope so. Time will tell, but I did enjoy this year’s offerings: finished off with a great win for Shane Lowry at The Open Championship.
Now, let’s turn our attention to the events in the world of UK Golf Retail this year.
Many retailers offer a loyalty card to customers to keep them coming back to the shop. Loyalty schemes can help give your customers an emotional connection with your brand with every transaction: deepening loyalty, and encouraging them to spend more. However, it’s essential to choose a program that will resonate with your customer base, or your business could miss out.
Loyal customers spend more money in shops than new ones. Plain and simple. A recent study by Harvard Business School found that a customer’s 6th purchase was, on average, 40% larger than his, or her, first: with the 8th being 80% more. Loyalty pays.
Loyal customers don’t just help your business because they spend more, however. According to Bain and Co., a 5% increase in customer retention can increase a company’s profitability by 75%. And, if those numbers don’t make you sit up and listen, a Gartner Groups study showed that 80% of a company’s future revenue will come from
If I had a crystal ball, I’d have won the lottery a few times and would be sitting on my own island trying to work out how to take out Amazon. However, since I now have you on to my blog page, the least I can do is give you a few thoughts on what could happen in the world of golf retail in 2019.
Well, 2018 will have to go down as a pretty interesting year. England did well in a football tournament; Europe thrashed the US in the Ryder cup; the Beast from the East caused total havoc, only to be followed by a heatwave that got us all in a sweat. Then the political system imploded, as the Parties forgot about voters amidst the Brexit maelstrom: leaving the general public in a spin, and delivering the worst Christmas sales for 10 years.
So, what does any of this mean for 2019 and what can we expect for the golf industry in the New Year?
With the build-up to Christmas well and truly underway, most retailers are trying to maximise their sales and take advantage of all the festive fervour. I’ve seen some great promotional efforts in golf clubs around the country. It’s amazing who has a special Christmas suit!!
While most people won’t start thinking about 2019 until long after the turkey has been eaten, there’s no harm inputting some thoughts together in preparation – especially as we all want next year to be “the best one ever”. Again.
The main area for consideration here is planning. In Crossover’s recent Pro Shop Retail Tips advice article, we brought up, what is, for many, the dreaded topic of budgeting. This may not be the most popular area of business, but it really is a key part to running your store. I’d encourage all business owners to spend a few hours over the coming weeks to make sure they have all their numbers together. If you want to have a really Continue reading “Get Set for 2019”
Thanks to Head PGA Pro Michael McCrudden from Roe Park Resort in Northern Ireland, for this Tweet:
“Hi Phil, any chance of a blog post on how to deal with suppliers going direct to consumer and cutting out/by-passing bricks and mortar retailers like the green grass PGA Pro?”
This is a great question, and one that seems to be a really hot topic at the moment. Whilst I can’t provide you with a silver bullet, I might be able to provide some insight in to why brands are doing it, why consumers like it, and how retailers can respond.
So, here goes!!
It’s only since we have moved in to the digital age that brands have been able to interact directly with the consumer. In the past, manufacturers relied on distributors selling Continue reading “When a Brand goes Direct to your Customer”
Discounting stock for the wrong reasons will cost your business dearly. In fact, without a strategy in place, sales can even be dangerous to your business: lowering your Average Sales Price (ASP) and reducing overall profits. To maximise the opportunities of a sale, retailers need clear objectives, says Phil Barnard.
Some might say that you don’t need a reason for a sale. We know customers love a bargain, (who doesn’t?), and sales are something most retailers do intermittently throughout the year. However, sales need to be planned as part of your business strategy, and with specific reasons in mind. Putting on a sale because ‘it’s that time of year’, could have a negative effect on your bottom line.
So how can you ensure your sale will bring the maximum benefits to your business?
Times are a changing, and in the world of retail, things move very quickly indeed. The online (clicks) and offline (bricks) continue to battle for the consumer spend and, of course, each has its pro’s and cons. Bricks and mortar provide the experience and immediate gratification of being able to touch and see: whereas online stores have seemingly infinite choice, and greater convenience, enabling you to shop from your armchair.
If the online channel is of interest to you, then there is one certainty – Amazon has changed the marketplace for ever.
Amazon established clear business principles and focused on them without distraction – no matter what anyone else thought or said.
BBC 4 recently broadcast a thought-provoking documentary that had some very useful insights for the golf industry: “Inside Bentley – A Great British Motor Car”?
It featured the thinking behind a £800 million investment in their latest model, the Bentayga: the fastest SUV ever built – a Bentley on steroids! It is the first time that they had developed an SUV. During its development it was essential that it sat perfectly in Bentley’s image, yet capable of winning-over future generations of customers. Clearly, they had recognised that, as the number of older customers diminished, (“the blazers” as they were referred to), the company needed to respond to the wants of younger generations.
– Step one demanded product development as identified.
– Step two importantly was the need to modernise their image at the point of sale. Hence the program saw the world’s oldest and largest Bentley dealer, Jack Barkley of Mayfair, having its interior stripped back and being replaced with sleek, new modern fittings and fixtures.
Bentley, an icon of British society, and Rolls Royce, have both recognised the need for change. So must the golf industry if it is to prosper in changing times and it too needs to take a similar two-step approach.
The first, updating the product: offering different forms of golf, e.g. speed or football golf, for example, and competitions that are more in tune with family life today. The second, going out of its way to promote a new image for the sport giving it a much-needed, wider appeal: particularly to the Millennials who are so different to the majority playing golf now but need to be captured for the future.
Food for thought for the New Year!
It’s another year of Black Friday mania, but is this all a benefit for the consumer … or retailer?
With all the advertising that is going on, you would think most retailers are giving away stuff for free. However, in terms of consumer bargains, lots of the deals don’t really seem to deliver.
I’m sure there are a few steals to be had, but in general, buyers should beware. Money Saving Expert and Which? (the consumer rights site) have both reported that some deals are not as good as advertised. Last year, Which? published a study reporting that over 50% of “Black Deals” had been the same price or cheaper earlier in the year.
Continue reading “Black Friday: Real Deals or Marketing Fluff?”
I am often asked “what’s the difference between sales and marketing. Are they both the same thing”? To me it’s a tricky question to answer as sales is in fact a part of marketing. To help people understand I use the example of a knife to explain the difference.
Phil Barnard 